Posted on 02/06/2013 7:42:40 AM PST by lbryce
The boy, a fifth-grader at Douglas MacArthur Elementary School whose name is not being released, was charged as a juvenile with brandishing a weapon, police said.
He was also suspended from school, and Alexandria City Public Schools Superintendent Morton Sherman said further action is being considered, including expulsion.
On Monday, the boy showed the plastic gun to at least one other student during a bus ride home from the school. The 10-year-old did not point it at anyone or threaten to shoot it, but he neglected to mention that the weapon was fake, said Alexandria police spokeswoman Ashley Hildebrandt.
School officials said they learned about the incident Monday evening and immediately started investigating. Alexandria police spoke to school administrators Tuesday morning before the boy got to school.
When the boy arrived, authorities found the toy in his backpack. He was taken into custody, transported to a juvenile detention center for booking and then released to his parents, Hildebrandt said.
"The safety of our students is always our first concern," Sherman said. "We appreciate the quick response and action by our police."
The toy resembled a semi-automatic handgun, said police spokesman Jody Donaldson. It was silver and had a black handle. It also had a orange tip that went into the barrel, showing that no ammunition was coming out of it.
In light of current events involving schools and guns, Donaldson said police "do have a heightened sensitivity to any rumor or concern" about a student possibly having a firearm.
"Any time we get a call like this, we take it very seriously until we can determine the extent of the weapon -- if it's real or not -- and what the student intends to do with it," Donaldson said.
But some people said police and school administrators overreacted.
"A toy gun is no danger to anyone," said Liane Rozzell, executive director of Families & Allies of Virginia's Youth. "A 10-year-old is not a fully formed adult by any means. And that kind of situation should be dealt with outside the courts and the justice system."
Robin Ficker, a Bethesda attorney who represented a 6-year-old Montgomery County student who was suspended last month for pointing his finger and saying "pow," said the schools have become terror-stricken.
"That just shows a certain hysteria with the school administration," Ficker said Tuesday. "What is the point? To say that you don't like guns, you don't like the Second Amendment?"
A letter was sent home to parents of all MacArthur students about the incident.
Like anyone else, they have a choice to refuse to obey an unlawful or immoral order.
Don’t make excuses for this.
Is this the same planet where kids used to bring water pistols to school and play with them at recess? Is this the same planet where every kid in the fourth grade had his own pocketknife, A REAL POCKETKNIFE, NOT A FAKE ONE. Is this the same planet where my fourth grade teacher BORROWED MY REAL POCKETKNIFE to open a package? I certainly don’t remember ever boarding a space ship but surely this cannot be the same planet where people used to have something called a brain and exercise what they called common sense. On that planet people who acted just like some of those who now run government at the very highest levels were confined in mental institutions called state hospitals so that they would not endanger themselves or others. On that planet the very zaniest of comedians could not have ever imagined anything as absurd as our everyday life has become. On that planet most people would bear almost any burden rather then humble themselves to ask for help, now those who have never produced anything of value in their entire worthless existence insist that those who have owe them a living and those who have never paid a dime in taxes insist that those who pay the bulk of taxes do not pay their fair share.
My Step-Dad said he had Roy Rogers guns and other memorabilia when he was a kid. Your post reminded me of it!
Yes, I’m wondering when we left Earth and came to some weirdo dimension.
OR.... we are on 'Earth', it has gone to hell, and a lucky few were transported to some weirdo dimension (heaven).
Jesus came back and took the 'righteous' with him, but there were so few, no one has even noticed.
There is that nasty thought too.
Interesting thought which I had not considered but I would have to rule it out. Jesus might well have taken the righteous and left me here but I do know a few really wonderful people and I can’t believe they have been “left behind”.
As an aside, have you noticed any ministers of the gospel disappearing lately? I haven’t and that would lead to some interesting questions concerning the possibility that Jesus has already removed the righteous.
Ever heard the old story about the school teacher who scolds the little boy about lying and proudly tells him that SHE has never told a single lie in her entire life. The little boy replies that it will be awfully lonesome for her in heaven seeing that it will be just her and George Washington.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.